Doug Gottlieb, the men’s basketball coach at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay and a longtime media personality, announced Wednesday he will no longer host his afternoon radio show to focus on his coaching responsibilities.
Gottlieb, 49, made headlines when he was hired by Green Bay in May 2024 but continued to host “The Doug Gottlieb Show,” his weekday national sports-talk program on Fox Sports Radio, most recently airing from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. (ET). Gottlieb, in his second season at Green Bay, announced the decision to step away from the show after a Wednesday night home victory over UC Santa Barbara.
“I’ve been doing this for a long time. But these kids (are) owed a fully dedicated coach,” Gottlieb told local reporters after the game. “I know I’m fully dedicated. But you only get one shot at this thing, and if there is any ounce of lack of prep or fatigue …”
An emotional Gottlieb then referenced last week’s Horizon League road win at IU Indy.
“This is going to sound crazy, but last week, we go down to Indy, and because of the timing of my show, the bus had to leave without me, and I flew,” he said. “I just, I don’t think that’s what I want to do as a coach.”
JUST IN: Doug Gottlieb is stepping away from his radio gig to focus on being a full-time division one head basketball coach for UW-Green Bay. He will still be doing the podcast.
Hear from an emotional Gottlieb on his decision to step away from the mic: pic.twitter.com/merWC7fL3X
— Kyle Malzhan (@KyleMalzhan) December 18, 2025
Gottlieb did not specify when exactly this transition would occur or what would replace his afternoon time slot on the airwaves.
The Phoenix are 6-7 (1-2 Horizon) this season and have won five of their last seven games. That’s already a considerable improvement over last season, Gottlieb’s first as a college head coach, when the team finished 4-28 overall, including 2-18 and last in the Horizon League.
Gottlieb is a former college basketball player, most notably for Notre Dame and Oklahoma State in the late 1990s, the latter under Hall of Fame coach Eddie Sutton. Gottlieb is Oklahoma State’s all-time leader in assists (793) and 11th on the NCAA’s all-time list (947). He later rose to media prominence as a pugnacious radio and television analyst for ESPN and CBS Sports.
Green Bay’s decision last year to hire Gottlieb as a first-time college head coach and allow him to continue hosting his weekday show was met with its share of derision and skepticism, a narrative the weathered talking head leaned into. In a feature on Gottlieb from February, he told The Athletic: “I love doing (the radio show). I love the promotion of it, and I love that eventually we’ll win.”
The Phoenix suffered a 21-game losing streak during one stretch last season, including a loss to Division II Michigan Tech. Despite that, Gottlieb had the support of the university to continue pulling double duty.
There was a financial element as well: Gottlieb’s base coaching salary of $215,000 last season was $40,000 less than Green Bay’s women’s basketball, but he was able to supplement that with his radio earnings. He is slated to earn a base salary of $250,000 this season.
“It’s really hard, it’s going to be a bit of a financial hit,” Gottlieb said Wednesday. “I’ll work through it. I’ve been blessed beyond all measure.”
He added he will continue producing similar content via podcasts and thanked iHeartRadio, which owns Fox Sports Radio, for being amenable to the change. The lack of a live show will make his continuing broadcast responsibilities more flexible.
“It will still be the same stuff, but I’ll do it off office hours and at home,” Gottlieb said. “I gotta have a life, I gotta be here for these kids, I gotta really dig in.”
Gottlieb signed a five-year contract with Green Bay through the 2028-29 season. The program, which moved to Division I in 1982, has made five NCAA Tournament appearances, most recently in 2016 as Horizon League tournament champions.
“This is a special place. I want to be the coach that rises it from the ashes, and I’m fully dedicated to Green Bay basketball,” Gottlieb said Wednesday. “I was always fully dedicated; it doesn’t really change much, but that’s what is going to happen.”